The Lion and the Tin Woman
by Jade of Purple
Summary: Daniel sees a different side of Wilhelmina. I’m not too great with summaries and I don’t want to give anything a way so you should check it out :
1. Chapter 1

**The Lion and the Tin Woman**

By: Jade of Purple

Disclaimer: Ummmm … I kind of don't own them. Crazy I know.

Summary: Daniel sees a different side of Wilhelmina.

Side Note: I don't know how to write Christina's accent so just pretend that it's there. :shrug:

**Chapter 1**

Daniel was looking over the photos for the cover when Christina rushed into his office.

"Mr. Mead, don't mean to disturb you, but do you know where Wilhelmina is?"

"I think she's in a meeting right now, is there something I can …" The rest of his sentence died on his lips when he looked up and saw that Christina had baby William with her.

"Actually there is. I just got a call from my husband and I need to get home quickly. Do you think you could watch him for a wee little bit?"

Daniel stood up from his chair and walked around his desk. "Ummm … well actually I'm not really good with babies."

Christina placed the baby seat and bag on his desk. "Oh you'll be fine. I just fed and changed him, so there's really nothing you'll have to do except watch him." She picked up the baby. "Now you be a good little boy." She kissed his forehead then placed him back down. "Have fun you two," she rushed out the room before Daniel could try to find another excuse.

Daniel watched her retreating form then turned to the baby. "Ok, this should be easy enough. It's not like I really have to do anything." He said out loud to himself. Then as if sensing Daniel's anxiety the baby began to whimper.

"Oh crap." He mumbled as he walked up to the baby seat. "Hey … little buddy whatever you do don't cry."

More whimpers came from the child.

"Hey its okay, everything's okay." Daniel cautiously moved to pick up William. At first he held him awkwardly half an arms length a way from his body, and then gradually he shifted him until William was cradled in his arms. Gently he began to rock him and William's whimpers died down. Daniel released a sigh of relief.

"This isn't too bad." He openly smiled down at the small child in his arms. A strange feeling of awe and over protectiveness took hold of him, and he found himself mesmerized by this tiny person. "You're so small." He whispered. And at that moment he would've done anything to keep that child safe.

William looked up at him with wide eyes. "Wondering who I am, aren't you?" Daniel made a funny face at him. "I'm your big brother Daniel. I probably look like a giant to you. Well don't worry I'm sure you'll be this tall and good looking one day." Daniel chuckled to himself.

He didn't know how long he stood like that, staring at the little bundle in his arms, but he knew the exact instant his moment of peaceful silence had been broken.

"What are you doing with my child?"

Daniel turned around and found Wilhelmina staring at him with a look of shock and suspicion on her face.

"Nothing, I … Christina had to go home and so she left him with me."

Wilhelmina walked up to Daniel and took William from him. "Why didn't she leave him with Marc?"

"I think I saw him with Amanda earlier." Daniel replied with a smirk.

"Enough said." She smiled down at William. A moment later she glanced back at Daniel and cleared her throat. "Thank you, for watching him."

Daniel was caught off guard by her show of gratitude and it took him a few seconds to respond. "You're welcome. I actually had a good time with the little guy."

"He does seem to like you, though I don't know why."

He knew that she was baiting him. "Probably has something to do with my killer smile and bravado."

Wilhelmina squinted her eyes at him as if she were trying to judge for herself. "No, that couldn't possibly be it." She smirked, and then turned her attention back to William.

Daniel opened his mouth to reply but stopped himself when he realized what he was seeing in front of him. In a matter of minutes Wilhelmina had transformed from the heartless and cold woman he saw everyday at work, to a loving and caring mother. It surprised him how completely different she looked just by holding William. He had never seen her genuinely smile till now. And he almost found himself believing that maybe this was the real her; that maybe deep down inside she really did care about others. He slightly shook his head in attempt to rid himself of these thoughts of her, but that did nothing but make him realize that he had been standing there just staring at her for a short while. Suddenly he felt awkward as if he were intruding on a private moment. He desperately wanted to break the silence.

"You know if you ever need help with watching him you can always give me a call. He is my little brother after all." He wasn't quite sure why he even said that, but at the time it had seemed like the right thing to say. And surprisingly he realized that he meant it.

Wilhelmina turned towards him as if she had forgotten he was there. She stared at him and said nothing; it almost seemed as if she was trying to make sense of what he had just said. Daniel thought for sure that she was going to reject his offer, but instead she simply nodded in acceptance then looked back down at her son.

The silence returned and so did Daniel's feeling of awkwardness. Unsure of what else to do, he mumbled an excuse and walked out of his own office.

Wilhelmina looked up and watched Daniel's retreating form before turning back to William. "Things will be different this time." She whispered. "I promise I will never forget to remind you how much I love you."

**TBC?**

**I hope you liked the story. Leave a review if you did :)**


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks for all the reviews, I really do appreciate them. :)

**The Lion and the Tin Woman**

**Chapter 2**

It was 8 o'clock at night as Daniel stood outside of Wilhelmina's apartment knocking like a mad man at her door. He wasn't exactly sure what had possessed him to do this, all he knew was that something was wrong and that he had to make sure she was all right. She hadn't shown up at work that day and it had taken Betty several hours to get some real answers from Marc. He felt like the wind had been knocked out of him when Betty told him that William as actually Christina and Stewart's biological son. He had barely spent time with the baby and yet he still felt sad and empty inside. He tried to convince himself that this was a good thing, but somehow it still felt wrong. It took him nearly an hour to realize why.

Wilhelmina had just lost the one thing that had given her a reason to stop putting herself first. She had just lost another person she cared deeply about. Perhaps this was the reason he was there and had been knocking on her door for over 30 minutes. He knew that Marc had tried all day to reach her, and that she had refused to open her door for even him, so what real chance did he, Daniel Mead, have? Probably none, but he didn't care. And for some reason he wouldn't allow himself to leave. Another 10 minutes had passed before the door suddenly opened.

"What the hell do you want?" She spoke in a low voice but there was intense anger behind each word.

"I…I wanted to check on you… to see if everything---"

She interrupted him. "Spare me your useless words. You're here for one reason and one reason alone. William is not Bradford's son and therefore I have no claim to the Mead company. So congratulations, you must be ecstatic."

"What? Wilhelmina that's not the reason I'm here." He took a cautious step into the doorway.

"Of course it is. Don't bother trying to fool yourself into believing that you've come here out of concern for me. I don't need it. So why don't you run back to the office. You can have the other half of the company I don't fucking give a damn anymore." She moved to slam the door but Daniel stepped forward and held it open.

"Damn it Wilhelmina, would you just listen to me!"

She suddenly swung the door wide open. "What Daniel? What is it that you want from me?" She yelled from the top of her lungs.

Daniel tried to speak in a calmer tone. "Look I know how you feel, when I lost DJ---"

"Shut up! You know nothing of how I feel. DJ was more like a convenient little brother than a son to you. You didn't even truly fight for him after you found out that you weren't his father." She could see the anger beginning to boil inside of him. "Tell me how many times have you spoken to him since he left? How many times have you tried to go and visit him? I really would like to know how long it was before you forgot all about him?" She sniggered. "You see the truth is you couldn't possible know how I feel because DJ meant nothing to you."

Something inside of him snapped and he grabbed and shoved her against the adjacent wall. The hatred he had once felt for her resurfaced and threatened to consume him. He wanted nothing more than to rip off that smug smirk off her lips, but something stopped his anger dead in its tracks. It was her eyes. Her eyes were almost empty and dead inside and they were practically daring him to do something. It was then that he realized she had said all those things to get a raise out of him. He had played right into her hand.

"It's not going to work." He said knowing that she would understand. Slowly he lessened his grip on her but did not let go. "It hurts like hell doesn't it? … Having your whole damn world shattered in just a moment."

She looked away from him and tried to keep her composure. "Let me go." She said through clenched teeth. She turned back to him. "I said get your damn hands off of me." She struggled to push him away but his body had hers pinned against the wall.

"No, not until you stop acting this way."

"And what way is that?"

"Like nothing happened; like you didn't just lose your--"

"Don't say it, don't you dare say it."

"Pretending like it didn't happen, won't make it go away."

Wilhelmina closed her eyes and tried in vain to will herself to disappear.

Daniel scrambled to find the right words to say. "This doesn't have to mean that you won't be in his life. You can still have a relationship with him."

"No I can't damn it! You of all people should know that. Nothing is the same as it was yesterday. I am not his mother and he … he is not my son. I am nothing to him. And nothing is exactly what I have left." A traitorous tear fell down her face.

Daniel didn't hesitate to reach up and wipe her tear away. Silence surrounded them for several long seconds and they could not help but stare into each others eyes. For a moment they had reached a level of understanding that neither of them had ever expected to have. For a moment they were just two ordinary people struggling to survive the pain of living. It was just a moment but it had felt like something more. And just as quickly as it began it abruptly ended when she looked away from him. This time when she moved to push him from her he didn't try to stop her. He took two steps back and breathed in a shaky breath as he tried to snap out of the trance like state he had been in. He glanced towards her and saw that she was trying to do the same. He looked away when she looked up at him, and it was then that he noticed his surroundings. The inside of her apartment looked as if a tornado had ripped through it. From what he could see there were pieces of artwork and furniture scattered on the floor. He stared at the mess in disbelief before turning his attention back to her.

She had moved towards the door and stood slightly behind it as if trying to shield her body with it. "You should go." Her voice was even and did not betray the uneasiness she felt inside. She didn't want anyone to see her like this, least of all him; but her will power was quickly crumbling and she needed to get him to leave. "I would rather be alone right now." She stood up straight and held his gaze.

He knew that she was trying to distance herself from him, and for some reason his sub-conscious wouldn't allow him to just accept things the way they were. "I think I should stay."

"Well this is my home and I want you to leave."

"No." He refused to move from his spot.

"Why are you doing this?" It was a genuine question.

It took him a moment to answer. "I'm not exactly sure."

She sighed in frustration before finally closing the door. She looked at him for a moment but said nothing; she then turned and walked away. Daniel stood there for several seconds unsure what to do before deciding to go after her. He followed her into the chaotic mess that had once been her bedroom. She sat on the edge of her bed and stared at the small crib in the corner. Daniel paused at the door before he cautiously moved to sit beside her. The crib was the only thing that was left untouched throughout the home. They sat there for several long minutes before she spoke.

"I keep expecting to find him lying inside of it, waiting for me." She whispered. Tears filled her eyes but she willed them not to fall.

Daniel turned to her but she refused to look anywhere but the crib. He opened his mouth to speak but could not think of any words that could possibly ease her sorrow. He knew that she was not the type of woman to show others her pain or to ask for support. No, she would never ask for help, but that did not mean he couldn't offer her some type of comfort, no matter how small it seemed. He swallowed the nervous lump in his throat and slowly moved his arm to rest around her shoulders.

Wilhelmina's body immediately tensed up as confusion filled her mind. She turned her head slightly towards him with a questioning gaze, but he was now looking at the crib in order to keep his eyes from meeting hers. A part of her wanted to withdraw from his touch, to yell, scream and shout for him to leave; but she felt so tired, so hollow inside that another part of her wanted nothing more than to accept this small moment of truce between them, and to hold onto him like a life vest as she floated through this sea of anguish. The latter part won and slowly her body began to relax. A comforting silence surrounded them as she allowed herself to rest her head upon his shoulder.

Ever so slowly the damaged heart of the woman made of tin began to mend its self. And as the lion who had finally found his courage gently pulled her closer, he thought to himself, _No, nothing will be the same as yesterday._

**THE END**

Now don't get me wrong I don't want William to be Christina's but I couldn't get that possibility out of my mind. And for some reason I also couldn't get the Wizard of OZ out of my head and I thought that the cowardly lion and the heartless tin woman were good metaphors for Daniel and Willi.

**Leave a review if you liked the story. :)**


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